Family Ties
by MelissaMargaret
Summary: When the Cullen family relocates to Ithaca, New York following the events of Bella's eighteenth birthday Alice researches her past and discovers the true meaning of family. Canon. One-shot


This is my first attempt at Alice and Jasper. I hope I pulled it off. I usually only write Carlisle and Esme, but this idea wouldn't leave me alone.

I don't own _Twilight_.

* * *

**Fam-i-ly **_noun _

1.) A group of individuals living under one roof and usually one head

2.) A group of persons of common ancestry.

Alice ran her fingers over the words as though they may disappear if she stopped. The raised lines of each letter moved fluidly under her fingertips, committing each word to memory. Her fingers lingered over the second line of the definition as if pressing the words a little harder might help her to believe them.

_How could people who had been so willing to throw her away truly be her family? _

The book made it seem so easy – so_ natural_ that this unknown group of people to whom she had been born and whose blood she had once shared should be called family. But as her fingers moved over the first definition she conjured in her mind the image of the six amazing vampires she would die for without a moment's hesitation. She could see Carlisle smiling in all his patient wisdom. She could hear Esme's loving, beautiful laugh. She could feel Emmett's massive bear hugs and see Rosalie's fierce protectiveness of those she loved. She could hear Edward, playing the piano for the family, content to bask in their happy glow even as his own feelings of loneliness plagued him. Most of all, though, she could see her Jasper, watching her with his mischievous golden gaze, smiling at her as they communicated in their own private way.

_Were these amazing people not her true family?_

Alice had been overwhelmed with question after question, mystery after mystery, and doubt after doubt since that fateful night in a dingy ballet studio in Phoenix. It was not Bella's injuries, however, or the fact that she herself had been the one to kill James that plagued her still, months later. The video James had left her – the undeniable documented proof of her past weighed heavy on her mind and even heavier on her heart. She had spent many nights lying in the arms of whoever would hold her thinking over her past and wondering what to do with her newfound information on her human self.

As her husband Jasper had, of course, been an incredible source of comfort to her. His ability especially put him in the best position to calm her down when she became to emotion or lift her spirits when she was feeling depressed. Even for all his comfort, though, Alice felt herself gravitating more toward the only woman she had ever or would ever call her mother.

Esme knew what it was to be unwanted. She had been passed from indifferent family to abusive husband in her human life and was pushed to a point of being certain even God didn't want her before finally taking matters into her own hands. Alice knew in those early days after Phoenix that Esme had lamented Alice's discovery. Her own miserable experiences caused her to wonder what her life would be like had she never been able to recall the pressure of fists against her body or hear her own screams of sorrow over her baby's death. Alice had heard her tell Carlisle as much. Alice knew though that even for all the pain wrought by her discovery it would be turn out better this way. She should know what happened to her. She should have every piece of information she could on the people who had shunned her. She would never be able to move forward if she could not reconcile her past now that she knew it.

It was Esme who first encouraged Alice to research her family. Following the disastrous events of Bella's birthday party the opportunity had presented itself through the family's move to Ithaca. The library at Cornell offered an extensive collection of books and articles through which Alice could establish a connection to her human past and family.

She began with a few simple genealogy books. She only wanted to test the waters of exploring her own past before diving head first into information she still wasn't sure she wanted. She knew she was looking in the right areas and she knew she was using the correct methods to search but she could not be sure she would find anything until the day she stumbled upon the obituary.

The resources at Cornell were amazing but Alice knew she would have to travel south in order to gain any true leads as to her family's history. It was on a rainy day in Biloxi, in the back of the near empty library that she found what she was looking for. She made copies of everything she wanted to take back to Ithaca and boarded the next flight home. She knew she didn't need paper copies but for reasons she herself did not fully understand she wanted to have them.

Now, spread out before her on a table in the far left corner of Cornell's library was all the information Alice had brought from Biloxi and right in the center of the disorganized pile was her mother's obituary. Alice would have known it was her even if she herself hadn't been mentioned. The soft black hair and large eyes were exactly like Alice's. She was the spitting image of this woman who had abandoned her. The irony was not lost on Alice that she looked so much like this stranger and nothing like the woman who had been there for her from the day she moved Edward's things to the garage and proclaimed his room to now belong to her and Jasper.

The thing that hurt Alice the most about the discovery of the obituary was the list of family members who had passed before Lillian Brandon.

…_was preceded in death by one daughter, Mary Alice Brandon._

Not only had they abandoned her in an asylum, they had gone on with their lives perpetuating the lie that their daughter was dead. In the days following her return from Biloxi Alice often wondered what could have driven them to be so heartless and cruel. She had discussed it with each member of her family and received the exact reactions she had been expecting. Carlisle and Esme, the perpetual, loving parents had reacted with shock and revulsion that anyone could pretend their child no longer existed, and yet there had been a knowing glint in both their eyes. Carlisle's father had done the very same thing after his transformation and Esme doubted her family had ever truly wanted her to begin with. She had tried to call Edward but she knew he wouldn't answer; she couldn't give up hope though. Emmett had given her one of his bear hugs, told her she was the best baby sister in the world and cracked a joke about them not winning any family of the year awards. Rosalie had patiently listened to Alice talk and sob for hours and then Rose gave Alice a manicure and they watched old black and white movies with Esme all night.

Girls night, as Rose called it, had done wonders for Alice's disposition but nothing could compare to the love and support Jasper gave her. Alice wasn't used to feeling so dejected. She had always been the brightest and happiest of those around her and she was more than happy to share that brightness with anyone. Living her life a step ahead of everyone else had formed her into a strong, confident woman who could never be shaken from what she knew. Until everything she knew changed. Since the revelation of James' tape she had relied on Jasper heavily to get her through the tough road she was on. Attempting to reconcile her past and somehow mold it into who she was and the life she lived was no easy feat, but Jasper was always there. He held her hand for hours sitting in the library as she poured over books and articles. He kept her calm when the emotions threatened to overwhelm her, and he acted as the rock on which she could lean as she traveled the weary road through her past.

He always patiently waited for her to come to him when she needed him and although she knew the stress of feeling everyone's emotions concerning Edward was weighing heavily on him it made Alice proud that he was able to balance helping them with helping her. His ability to diffuse any situation was quickly making him the hero in the family as people regularly fell to pieces over Edward's disappearance. He had always been Alice's hero and she was proud to share that feeling with that family now.

"Alice?" She heard his soft whisper across the library. He did this every day. As soon as his philosophy class let out he would immediately head for the library knowing she would be there.

"In the back," she whispered. Alice was unable to contain the smile that spread across her face at their little game. She knew he was perfectly capable of locating her without calling her name, but it was always a comfort to hear it called across the library for only her ears to hear.

Jasper slid into the seat beside her and automatically reached for her hand. He delicately lifted the paper containing the obituary and eyed it contemplatively.

"I don't know what to think, Jasper. I hate that they abandoned me, but on the other hand, if they hadn't I never would have found you or our family."

"Maybe that's the way you need to look at it, darlin." He held up the paper and tapped the picture. "What is this woman's name?"

"Lillian Brandon," she replied slowly.

"And what is your mother's name?"

Her reply was automatic. "Esme Anne Cullen."

"How many children did this woman have?"

"Three."

"And how many siblings do you have?"

"Four."

"One final question. What is this woman's husband's name?"

Alice surveyed the obituary. "John Brandon."

"And what is your father's name?"

"Carlisle Cullen."

Jasper put the paper down and brushed an errant strand of hair out of Alice's eyes. "I think that's all the proof you need as to who your family is."

"I know," she said. "I love them all so much. I don't know what I would do without them."

"Maybe you should talk to them. Everyone is having a tough time right now. I know hearing how much you love them would make it a little better."

Alice knew he was right, of course. Edward's grief over leaving Bella and subsequent departure to hunt for Victoria was taking quite a toll on the family. She had tried to stay out of the way while researching her roots, and not openly talk about it to anyone who didn't ask, but she was seeing with more and more clarity that what they all needed right now, more than anything, was each other.

"Come on," she said, pushing back from the table and rising to her feet.

"I want to see my family."

* * *

This was originally going to be a one-shot, but I have decided to turn it into a short story about Alice's relationships with each person in her family.


End file.
